British Gangsters: Faces of the Underworld

Bernard O’Mahoney begins his journey in Glasgow, an epicentre for criminal activity over the past 50 years. Bernie meets the city's first Godfather of crime, Walter Norval who talks of Glasgow's underworld during the 50s and 60s. Walter discusses his eventual arrest and trial, which was abandoned after the High Court was blown up by his daughter and her partner in order to destroy evidence.

One of Manchester's most infamous gangs, formed in the 60s, was the Quality Street Gang. Bernie chats to three of the members: Jimmy ‘The Weed’ Donnelly, whose fame is such that Thin Lizzy wrote the song Jimmy The Weed about him, and Terry Barlow and Arthur Donnelly. Bernie meets Sean Keating who tells us about his late father and Manchester legend, Ken Keating.

With a history rich in crime activity, England's capital gives Bernie the chance to meet numerous 'faces' that have shaped London's colourful past, as well as present day names. Mad Frank Fraser talks about 1950s London up until he joined the Richardson gang in the early 60s. We meet gangster Eddie Richardson, younger sibling of crime boss Charlie Richardson.

Panda Anderson will tell the story of the Krays visit to Newcastle. (To purchase gaming machines from a man named Vince Landa). We meet Billy Robinson, a man who recruited every top villain and fighter in Newcastle to work as doormen. One of these men was Viv Graham, something of a cult hero, who was gunned down on New Year's Eve in 1993.

The 70s and 80s saw a change in activity for criminal fraternities. Following the 'harsh' sentencing of the Krays, many turned to armed robbery to earn a living. Villains saw the banks and armoured cars that transported huge amounts of cash around the UK as relatively easy pickings. Bernie talks to Danny Woollard and Angelo 'Festus' Hayman, two men who carried out the Snow Hill Robbery in 1995.

Bernie attempts to answer the age old question Does crime pay? For many 'faces', the initial adrenalin thrill of fast money and high rewards leads to decades of violence, prison life, destruction, fear and loss of life. The most infamous names in Britain's recent criminal history talk about the reputations they have gained and the heartbreak it has caused both themselves and their families.